


Mystery of a Lifeline

by veronalotte



Category: Lifeline (Video Game 2015)
Genre: Alien Biology, Alien Invasion, Aliens, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Light Angst, Mind Control, Mind Manipulation, Mind/Mood Altering Substances, Multi, Original Character(s), Science Experiments, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-06
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2019-06-22 18:52:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15588438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/veronalotte/pseuds/veronalotte
Summary: Warning:this is Lifeline game fanfiction,and it may not be fully canonical to Lifeline Timeline.It mostly consists of my own ideas.Also,you don't have to play Lifeline to read this,BUT I highly recommend playing it for better understanding.The aliens are already on Earth.Most of the world population is oblivious to this fact- just like Emma Blackwood was once. But after a mysterious dissapearance of her parents, stories from her uncle, she began rethinking all that she knew about space and Earth before.After her childhood friend-with whom she lost connection long time ago-is chosen to accompany the crew on the first mission  of a new spacecraft which soon crashes on a distant moon, she decides to take an action, building a communicator to get in touch with him again. After that, she is thrown into a mysterious and hidden world. Someone else contacts her, in need for help- and it continues. Why do they contact her of all people? Is it possible to stop the aliens? She has been trying to answer these questions since the day she saw the truth. In search of help, she finds an organization that fights against the aliens secretly. Working here, she begins discovering something completely new to her.





	Mystery of a Lifeline

Thin rays of light were intruding the little bedroom, shining on a teenage red-head lying on her bed, as if persistently trying to wake her up. The girl never was the one to wake up early- she used to prefer spending more time casually lying on a bed, especially on holidays, like that day. Little she did knew she was going to be awakened soon by her friend, whom has stayed with her all the night, sleeping on a small sofa. 

The boy yawned loudly, rubbing his eyes and looking at his peacefully sleeping friend. Brunette giggled lightly, remembering the last night. Both of them had watched different science fiction films up until Emma the red-head have fallen asleep like an infant so her uncle had to carry her all the way to bedroom, luckily he didn't judge them for watching films almost until midnight. 

"At least she will get all my weird references from now on!"-the brunette thought, before drifting off to sleep.

And the next day, having been awakened by the sun, Taylor found himself completely alone- his friend was still asleep, and her uncle left for a work. He sighed, planning to wake Emma up. 

He got up quietly, walking toward her bed and looking for a while at her face. He didn't want to wake her up as much as he didn't want to be left alone in a house he could easily loose direction in, but a choice had to be made. And he chose to wake her up himself.

Taylor tickled her nose slightly, trying not to chuckle from her sad humming as she began waking up.

"Wakey-wakey, sleepyhead."-he said, still tickling his friend's nose.

All of a sudden, a frown formed on Emma's face, and she turned herself, away from Taylor's hand and groaned slightly.

"Five more minutes..."-Emma pleaded, clearly not wanting to get up from a comfy bed. But Taylor, as persistent as always, didn't even think of giving up.

"Hey, this isn't how you treat a guest, you know?"-the boy questioned, patting girl's back and laughing. Emma let out a long and theatrically exausted groan once more, suddenly realizing what was happening. And as she remembered events of the last night, she almost jumped out of a bed, her hair resembling a bird's nest.

"That's no fair, Taylor!"-she complained, trying to sound as irritated as possible, but it only was funny for her friend.

"Well, at least you woke up. And I absolutely had no idea how to find some food for a breakfast in your house, so sorry not sorry."-he made up an excuse, innocently shrugging his shoulders. He didn't regret waking her up.

Emma rolled her eyes, tracing the fingers through her orange-coloured hair in attempt to straighten them. She sighed, opening the door.

"Well, kitchen is nearby, just go to the first floor, then turn right and you'll find it instantly. You don't have to cook anything. Help yourself while I'm trying to dress up, okay?"

"Fine, but I'll eat up all your supplies if it takes too long. I'm just super hungry right now."-Taylor replied, grinning as he was being shoved out of the room, making Emma shake her head in dissaproval.

"No, you totally can't do that. That's how a guest doesn't act, you know."-she mimicked Taylor's earlier speech with her eyebrows raised, closing her door after Taylor sighed for the last time and left. 

She finally was alone and able to think clearly. She surely enjoyed Taylor's company- he was nerdy and smart, so she easily got along with him and they have been friends since they were eight; but she still needed to spend some time alone, just to clear her thoughts and relax. Emma quickly dressed herself up, wearing a t-shirt and shorts, but didn't leave yet, trying to remember what happened the day before.

She invited Taylor to a sleepover- she didn't have much friends, let alone girls to 'party' with, and he seemed to be the right choice. He got excited about this- even promised to bring sci-fi films on a DVD to watch, and Emma promised to buy a lot of popcorn. The girl was surprised to find out that Taylor has brought fifteen different DVDs with him, saying that he perceived watching all these films one by one as a challenge. He liked science fiction and everything related to it just as much as Emma did; but she didn't seem to enjoy it like him, as if something was preventing her from it. Something he hopefully would never know...

Emma shook her head once more, trying to get rid of unwanted thoughts. She enjoyed the evening, Taylor did too and it was all that mattered. Emma realized she needed to calm herself a bit and just get down to meet her friend, who by that time probably was thinking of hiding all the supplies from the fridge. She knew he was capable of such jokes, but what was more odd for her- the fact that he made innocent jokes like that with her mostly. Sure, he had more friends- but with them he seemed to be more serious. 

"Poor Taylor,-Emma often thought sarcastically,-nobody understands your jokes except for me."

  Memories of good times Emma had with her best friend flooded her mind to the point she completely forgot that he was still a guest in her house. A sudden realization hit a teenager, and made her panic a little- it was a little bad habit of hers- to get too lost in thoughts that she forgot about the real world.

Emma rushed into the corridor, but the smooth smell of recently cooked pancakes stopped her for a while. She remembered that her uncle left a base liquid for pancakes in the fridge so that they could be cooked in the morning, but who could have prepared the meal if two teens were the only people present in the whole house? 

Emma's blue eyes widened at the quick realization.

  That sneaky-

"-Hey, Emma? I'm very close to your supplies and I'm very hungry!"-shouted a boy from the kitchen while the read-haired girl was furiously running down the stairs. 

  Emma peaked into the kitchen before entering it. Taylor was standing near a stove, holding a pan and humming Space Oddity. In the plate which stood on a small wooden table were placed a handful of deliciously looking pancakes which made Emma's stomach twirl a bit. She was shocked by a sudden display of Taylor's cooking abilities she never knew of up until she witnessed him making a breakfast.

Taylor turned around when he finished preparing a last pancake, noticing his friend leaping out of a corner and staring at him with shock. He chuckled, seeing Emma in such an awkward position was kind of funny.

"-Here comes our dear slowpoke! I actually raided your supplies a little. Sorry not sorry. But look at what great cook Taylor prepared while you were busy coming downstairs! Fresh and hot pancakes, just for you... And for me, because I'm hungry as well."-he said, gesturing for Emma to sit and hoping he did a good job in cooking as he didn't want to make Emma upset.

Emma got out of her shock after Taylor finished talking, but instead of being angry she looked curious. The girl moved to a chair.

  "-You've never told me you could cook. It's actually cool, I won't even punish you for raiding my supplies... If it's tasty enough."-she said, breathing in the satisfactory smell. 

"-Oh, sorry for that. I just got used to hearing nonsense about cooking not being a 'man's' business, so I kind of was afraid you'd say that, uh, not that you're stereotypical and all..."-Taylor said, suddenly getting a bit anxious. He didn't want Emma to think bad of him and he didn't want to her to think he was that awkward.

Emma laughed, which relieved him. She easily understood him; it was as if they had a bond and could read each other's thoughts immediately.

"-It's fine, Tay. Don't think about it. After all, I have a meal to judge."-Emma replied, carefully placing a fork with a bit of the pancake into her mouth to taste.

"-So how do you rate my cooking, oh holy Gordon Ramsay? P. S. Don't judge me harsly ,please, I'm a very sensitive person."

  That bit almost melted in her mouth; although it was not restaurant-level food, Taylor was surprisingly good at cooking. 

"-Not bad, I'm impressed. You've won an A+ sticker which says 'good job!' and will be sent to a spaceship to represent Earth in an intergalactic cooking contest!"-exclaimed Emma, rising her hands in approvement. Taylor giggled.

"-Hooray! No alien can compete the one and only Taylor."-he answered, still laughing at their conversation. They both knew how to lighten each others' mood.

The kids finished eating after a while, cleaned up and finally got the chance to talk about what bothered Emma all along. She was pretty nervous, recalling what her uncle and parents said to her. Emma didn't know exactly how to introduce the new information to Taylor; she didn't want to shock him. Or make him sad. 

"-So, you wanted to say something?"-brunette questioned, looking at the worried girl. 

Emma tried not to look at Taylor's eyes. Minutes ago they were enjoying themselves- joking even, and she couldn't bring herself to think about hard topics or remember what she was about to do. But Emma felt like she had to tell the truth- no matter what. Or else their friendship was never true.

"-Taylor, I... I'm leaving. My parents are moving to Oregon, and my uncle says it's not exactly safe for us here, in Austin. Not that we're criminals, just my family got into an argument with a big corporation."-she said quickly, as if trying to make sure Taylor wouldn't make out her words.

The boy froze for a second. He felt as if someone just squeezed his insides; the revelation hit him hard. He didn't want her to leave. After all, he got used, attached to her; and leaving a best friend is always hard; even if they could contact through the internet, it was nothing like being close in real life. They were close from being ordinary eight-year-olds, first being in different schools and then moving into one - always dreaming about space and how they would get to travel in a rocket, they even were being teased that it's going to be some sort of honeymoon for two lovebirds. They dreamt of going to the same university. They always helped each other.

Emma tried to hang on to Taylor because she never had much friends. Being not positive, talkative and beautiful enough, she was teased in junior years, and she was glad to meet someone who understood her. Leaving him was hard to accept, but it was out of her control. Adults made all decisions; they said she wasn't old enough to understand.

  "-Emma, it's... Okay. And thanks for telling the truth. Don't know how I would cope with you suddenly disappearing."-Taylor said, smiling a little, yet he didn't seem to lighten the mood and it made him sigh.

"-Ugh, those stupid corporations! They rule the world with money... Could've came up with something better than kicking someone out of their home!"-He added, that time seemingly angrier, as he frowned. Deep down he knew they could do nothing. But he still hoped their relationship would persist.

"-I'm really glad you understand and support me, but there's nothing we can do. Unless we find a way to communicate on the internet. You've always been nice to me, and now I think I need to repay you. Even if we're not close- it's completely fine! I know you cannot live without me, so... I'm going to help you cope. I'll be your lifeline, and you'll be my loyal companion."-Emma said, chuckling lightly. She was glad she came up with an idea on how to be in touch, even if it was obvious.

"-Oh yeah, you know you're my voice of reason. I would've gotten in so much trouble without you! Not like... I get in trouble anyway... But it's because I'm a rebel and don't listen to you."-he replied with a smile.

"-Well then, rebel. Listen to me at once: promise we're going to be together no matter what."

"-I pledge my allegiance to Emma and for power she stands..."-Said Taylor, taking her hand in his. It was cold out of nervousness. Yet they didn't shake hands and for some reason held them for a while; Taylor blushed a little, just because he was a bit worse at hiding his emotions. When else would they get a chance to be here like that? 

A knock on the door changed everything. The world started twirling, the image of house and teenagers fading, and all of a sudden something else could be heard.

       (It was a dream.)

(Author's note: it's the most simple cipher. Don't worry if you don't see any punctuation after decoding, dots can't be decoded that way. Each number represents a letter. Good luck!)

5-24-16-5-18-9-13-5-14-20 23-5 8-1-22-5 2-5-5-14 23-1-20-3-8-9-14-7 15-22-5-18 19-15 3-1-12-12-5-4 2-12-1-3-11-23-15-15-4 6-1-13-9-12-25 6-15-18 1-14 5-19-20-9-13-1-20-5 15-6 20-23-15 23-5-5-11-19 8-21-13-1-14 14-1-13-5-4 5-13-13-1 19-5-5-13-19 20-15 8-1-22-5 1 4-5-5-16 3-15-14-14-5-3-20-9-15-14 20-15 1-14-15-20-8-5-18 8-21-13-1-14 14-1-13-5-4 20-1-25-12-15-18 4-5-19-16-9-20-5 2-5-9-14-7 21-14-4-5-18-5-19-20-9-13-1-20-5-4 1-20 15-2-10-5-3-20-19 12-9-11-5 19-3-8-15-15-12 2-15-20-8 15-6 20-8-5 19-21-2-10-5-3-20-19 19-5-5-13 20-15 2-5 3-12-5-22-5-18 23-8-15 9-14-20-5-18-5-19-20-19 21-19 20-8-5 13-15-19-20 9-19 19-21-2-10-5-3-20 5-13-13-1 19-8-5 8-1-19 19-8-15-23-14 20-8-5 19-1-13-5 19-9-7-14-1-12-19 1-19 1 8-21-13-1-14 16-18-5-22-9-15-21-19-12-25 11-14-15-23-14 1-19 3-12-5-16-19-25-4-18-1 23-5 8-1-22-5 20-15 15-2-19-5-18-22-5 20-8-5 2-15-20-8 6-1-13-9-12-9-5-19 3-12-15-19-5-12-25 23-5 8-1-22-5 3-15-14-3-5-18-14-19 13-25 17-21-5-5-14

(Another note: phew, that was hard to write... I hope it's good and you enjoyed reading it! You can leave comments below.)


End file.
